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Spinosaurus
Spinosaurus (name meaning "Spine Lizard") is a genus of large spinosaurid theropod dinosaur that originated during the Middle Cretaceous period in what is now North Africa.'' It was among the largest terrestrial carnivorous dinosaurs in the history of all time. Facts Era & Discovery ''Spinosaurus lived during the Middle Cretaceous period is North Africa from 112–93 million years ago and was the dominant predator of its time. Discovered by famous German paleontologist Ernst Stromer in 1912, it was originally depicted with a skull resembling that of a Megalosaurid. During WWII, the type specimen was lost during an allied bombing raid, since the museum it was housed in was across the street from the Nazi headquarters. The old depictions made it look like a Megalosaur with a sail on its back, but then in 1986, the well known dinosaur Baryonyx was discovered and that changed the look of Spinosaurus forever, giving it the new view to more of a bipedal crocodile with massive, muscular arms and a sail on its back. Physical Attributes Spinosaurus stood around 17 feet (5.3 m) tall, measured 45 feet (13.9 m) long, and weighed 7 tons (14,000 lbs.), making it one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs that ever existed, third counting Giganotosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex. Spinosaurus had long jaws that measured up to 5.5 feet (1.7 m) long, and conical teeth evolved to snatch fish from the water. The conical shape spread the stress forces of struggling prey moving frantically in their jaws, in a more even manner, similar to how Crocodile teeth do. Spinosaurus was a light-built but very large bipedal theropod, approximately twice the height and length of a pickup truck. It possessed a long, narrow crocodile like snout filled with conical, non-serrated teeth, and it was recognisable by six-foot-tall neural spines along its back which were connected by membrane to form a sail-like structure. Similar to but larger compared to both Dimetrodon and Edaphosaurus, Spinosaurus had a large sail on its back that measured up to 6-8 feet tall, which allowed to heat up if it was ever cooled or loose heat if it was too hot. It also had very long, five-foot forearms, and while it spent much of its time on its two legs, it was shown to occasionally crouch down onto all fours. It had massive, clawed forearms that were up to 7 feet (2.3 m) long and used them to walk if needed. It had a long flexible tail, like a crocodiles, to propel it through the water. It had a long neck up to 7.5 feet (2.3 m) long for mobility when catching fish. Behavior & Traits Spinosaurus was discovered to be a solitary animal, only getting together with other members of its species during mating season. It competed for food with its rival, Carcharadontosaurus. This massive carnivore preyed on fish, dinosaurs, and pterosaurs alike. Its crocodile-like skull, and especially the holes which were said to contain sensors, support this notion. In its natural habitat, Spinosaurus was a territorial, volatile, and aggressive creature which would chase after any potential prey it caught in its territory, and it would return once it knew that there was good prey in the area. In both hunts and combat, Spinosaurus would rely on its jaws as a weapon for crushing to death and eating its prey and opponents. Spinosaurus lived mainly in the mangroves and floodplains of Africa hunting fish, but it would hunt large terrestrial animals if needed. Journal Entry Gallery 4x1Spinosaurus5.png 4x1Spinosaurus9.png 4x1Spinosaurus8.png Category:Prehistoric Animals Category:Dinosaurs Category:Reptiles Category:Cretaceous Dinosaurs Category:Cretaceous Wildlife Category:Predators Category:Largest Carnivorous Dinosaurs Category:Most Famous Prehistoric Creatures